Crank

Reviews for the easily distracted

Pusha T

Fear of God II: Let Us Pray

Def Jam

2.5 Stars

Riffing: Kanye's glitzy Good Music label aims for street cred with follow-up to acclaimed mixtape by Clipse's Terrence Thornton.

Reference points: Demented party music leaves Pusha adrift — the hefty beats don't live up to his intelligence. Turns a hell of a phrase, though: "Cocaine Ronald gave us, then Nancy tried to save us/ By that time we had Motorola pagers."

If you like: Big KRIT, DJ Quik, Raekwon, waxing nostalgic about the hard years.

Kate Monaghan

Fade EP

(self-released)

3 Stars

Riffing: Angelic-voiced Royal Oak singer-songwriter delves into the deep end of pain on harrowing but pretty five-track EP.

Reference points: The tasteful arrangements walk a grown-up line between bliss and boredom like recent Feist and Wilco albums and run counter to the emotional lyrics much of the time, but the restraint serves to cushion the uncomfortable directness in tunes like "Waiting."

If you like: Everything But the Girl, Over the Rhine, fearless confessionals.

Crystal Stilts

Radiant Door EP

Sacred Bones

3.5 Stars

Riffing: The feel-bad noise rock record of the year. Brooklynites keep the perverse party succinct and ominous on the first half, go full-force into rapturous five-minute dirges on the second.

Reference points: "Dark Eyes" may as well be a popped-up Joy Division cover, but by the extraordinary "Frost Inside the Asylum" the band sounds uncannily like a beauty-absorbed Factory-era Velvet Underground.

Reference points: The sound won't surprise you if you dig Jaar's other work, but the rockist texture of Harrington's contributions add a fascinating dimension to his already warm, sensuous sound; if anything it's an easier transition than the somewhat left-field Jaar solo EP Don't Break My Love.

If you like: Eno-Fripp, getting hypnotized.

Cass McCombs

Humor Risk

Domino

2.5 Stars

Riffing: Indie darling elder statesman of sorts lightens up slightly on his second LP of 2011. The bright riffage and charm of "The Same Thing" leave one hoping for more levity than usual, but soon it's back to the mid-tempo dirges.